blake



(No Model.)

R. W. BLAKE. PEDAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

No. 445,035. Patented Jam-20,1891.

UNITED STATEs PATENT OFFICE.

RUFUS XV. BLAKE, OF DERBY, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE STERLINGCOMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

PEDAL ATTACHMENT FOR PIANOS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 445,085, dated January20, 1891.

Application filed September 29, 1890. Serial No. 366,525. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, RUFUS IV. BLAKE, of Derby, in the countyot' NewHaven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Improvement inPianissimoPedal Attachment for Pianos; and I do hereby declare thefollowing, when taken in connection with accompan ying drawings and theletters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of thisspecification, and represent, in-

Figure 1, a side view of the tail of one key and its action, showing thekeyboard in transverse section with end view of the bar E and side Viewof the pianissimo-pedal and its connection with said bar; Fig. 2, a rearview of the key-board and a portion of the keys, showing the bar E ashung thereon; Fig. 3, a plan view of the pedals; Fig. 4, a front view ofthe pedals, showing the connecting levers.

This invention relates to an improvement in pianos, it having for itsobject to produce through the pedals a pianissimo effect and so that itmay be combined with the soft pedal to produce an extreme eifect of thischaracter when desired; and the invention consists in the constructionas hereinafter described, and particularly recited in the claim.

A represents the rear portion of the keyboard of a piano, and B thetails of the keys. The action above the keys is of common construction.0 represents the hammer, and D the tracker, by which the keycommunicates with the action. The construction of the action is too wellknown to require particular description. Longitndinally on the key-boarda bar E is arranged so as to stand. beneath the tails of the keys, asseen in Figs. 1 and 2. This bar is hung to the key-board by links F,which permit the bar to rise and fall and yet maintain a constantparallelism with the keyboard and tails of the keys, and so thatinrising it will strike the tails of all the keys and cause them to riseaccordingly, or as it drops it will fall below the normal position ofthe keys and leave them free, as represented in Figs. 1 and 2.

In Figs. 3 and 4, G represents the usual softpedal and II the usualloud-pedal. Between these pcdalsa third pedal I is arranged. hung in theusual manner, and atits rear end a pedal-rod J extends up and so as tobear upon the under side of the bar E, as clearly seen in 5 Figs. 1 and2, and so that as the pedal is depressed, as indicated in broken lines,Fig. 1,

it will, through the connection of the rod J, cause the bar E to riseaccordingly, as also indicated in broken lines. In such rising 6c of thebar E under the pressure upon the pedal the bar strikes the under sidesof the tails of the keys and raises them accordingly,

as also indicated in broken lines, Fig. 1. This rising of the keysoperates upon the action to take the hammer to a position nearer to thewires, yet leaves the hammer still under the control of the action toreceive the blow, as indicated in broken lines, Fig. 1. This rising ofthe tails of the keys reduces the movement of the key accordingly andthe force upon the hammer, so that the hammers under the force of thekeys receive but short strokes, resulting in a corresponding slightforce of blow, and so long as the bar E is held in this up position thekeys and the action will re main in that same position, so that the saidslight strokes will continue and a pianissimo eitect will be the result.

The pedal Iis independent of the soft-pedal G, so that the effect of thesoft-pedal may be produced without the eifect of the third orpianissiino pedal I. To produce an extremely soft eltect, I provide acoupling of the pianissimo and soft pedals, which is best done asrepresented in Figs. 3 and 4:. K represents a lever hung transverselyabove the pedal I and connected to the pedal bya rod L, so that thedepression of the pedal I will correspondingly depress the lever K, asrepresented in broken lines, Fig. 4:.

M represents the soft-pedal lever connected to the soft pedal by a rodN, as usual. The lever M extends to a position beneath the lever K'andso that when the pedal I is de- 5 pressed it will also depress the leverM, and consequently apply the soft-pedal; but this leaves the soft-pedalindependent of the pedal I, because in the depression of the pedal G thelever M is depressed independent of the lever K, but the depression ofthe pedal I will correspondingly depress the lever M.

The pianissimo-aetion of the pedal I is generally desirable only forextreme effects and in addition to the soft-pedal. Hence the two pedalsare combined, so that a single pressure.

upon the pianissimo-pedal I may apply the elfect of the soft-pedal inaddition to its own pianissimo effect.

The lever K may be omitted, and so as to leave the two pedals to beoperated with entire independence; but I prefer to employ the lever K,as the pedal I is seldom required, except as an addition to theoperation of the soft-pedal.

I claim The combinationvof the parallel bar E, ar-

ranged beneath the tails of the keys and so as to move freely up anddown to correspondingly raise or liberate the keys, the pedals G and I,in connection, respectively, with the lever M and the bar E, a lever K,hung to the pedal I and so as to bear upon the said lever M under thedepression of the said pedal I, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo subscrib- 25 ing witnesses. v

RUFUS W. BLAKE.

Witnesses:

T. P. MASON, J AMES W. BRooKs.

